


8 Days

by afinemess



Series: 8 Days [1]
Category: The Nanny
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-18
Updated: 2015-02-18
Packaged: 2018-03-13 13:37:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3383552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afinemess/pseuds/afinemess
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A story exploring what can happen during 8 days of a vacation.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Monday

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any characters from "The Nanny."

**Monday**

CC Babcock leaned against the back of her green loveseat, legs crossed and her Manolo mule dangling precariously from the tips of her toes. She took no notice of this as she read through the script of the play they were currently producing for what felt like the tw0-hundredth time. The part of her brain that could never quite keep quiet applauded her for being able to read when the office was full of white noise.

The white noise, in fact, included Fran, Maggie, Niles, and Maxwell. While the butler wasn't participating in what could only be called the family argument, he was, as usual, not helping matters. In some part of her brain, CC dimly knew that Fran and the children were upset about their vacation plans falling through. As a small smirk played on the corners of her lips, CC thought that Niles must be upset as well, given that he usually did his best impression of a sloth when the family took a vacation.

The trill of her cell phone yanked her out of her concentration on the play and, annoyed, she fished in her bag and pulled out the tiny contraption. Her movements halted when she realized that her father was calling her.

"Hello, Daddy," CC greeted.

_Daddy?_ Niles mouthed to her silently. Rolling her eyes, she pivoted away from the butler and felt her mule slide off of her foot completely.

"I'm fine…oh really? That's interesting…In the Hamptons?" CC asked. At this word, CC unknowingly gained the full attention of Fran and Maggie and, by default, Maxwell. "Definitely a lucrative market…Sagaponack? I can't believe there's an opening…I'd have to see about taking some time off work but I'm sure I could pop in and take a look around." At Fran's gasp, CC glanced over and started slightly when she saw the undivided attention of the white noise. "Yes, I-I'll get back to you…Love and kisses, yes, yes…Goodbye."

As CC slid her phone back into her bag, Fran's self-control could be upheld no longer. "Are you going to the Hamptons?" she asked excitedly.

"You held that in for all of fifteen seconds, Nanny Fine. Well done," CC congratulated. Fran gave her a mock-curtsy. "I could possibly be going, if Maxwell will grant me some time off."

"Well, we were just discussing the possibility of a vacation," Maxwell began. "As I was going to take some time off, you are, of course, allowed to do the same."

"My father's interested in some rental property in Sagaponack," CC explained. "But as he's in Sacramento, it's harder for him to get there right now and it's likely to sell quickly."

"Why is he in Sacramento?" Maxwell asked.

"What sort of property? Beachfront?" Fran queried at the same time.

"He's likely doing the same thing in Sacramento, and I don't know what sort of property," CC responded without pause.

"I didn't know your father had ventured into real estate," Max said.

CC nodded. "He feels that Babcock, Inc., has dominated the financial sector and figures he'd like to deal with the real estate one next."

"It's probably on a beach," Fran mused as though there wasn't another conversation going on.

"Seems like a wise investment. Real estate is doing quite well, especially in the Hamptons," Max said.

"Babcock, Inc.?" Niles repeated incredulously. "You have a corporation?"

CC ignored the nanny, nodded at her business partner, and looked coolly at Niles. "Where do you think my money came from? I was supposed to take over my father's seat on the Board until I decided to work here." Niles continued to look at her with a strange look upon his face but she had no time to decipher this, as Nanny Fine plowed on.

"When are you going?" she asked in an abrupt manner, very unlike her usual tone.

"As soon as possible. Father—"

"Daddy," Niles muttered.

"—doesn't want to miss out on the house," CC finished, unfazed.

"Well," Fran said with a tone of finality in her voice as she turned to Maxwell, "when are we going?"

"What?" Maxwell asked, startled.

" _We_?" CC repeated incredulously.

"Our plans for the Bahamas fell through and, wouldn't you know it, new plans for the Hamptons just came up!" Fran said cheerfully. "Miss Babcock can go check out the property, and we can lounge on the beach and shop in town!"

To CC's horror, Maxwell actually appeared to be considering the possibility and didn't look put-off by it. Unseen by the family, Niles pointed and laughed at CC silently.

"What do you say, old man?" Maxwell asked, peering around Fran and glancing at his butler.

"What?" The usually stoic butler displayed shock on his face.

"Well, it isn't as though CC's checking out a resort. We'll need someone to cook for us in Sagaponack," Maxwell reasoned. Niles looked from person to person in the office as though appealing for help and finally landed on CC, who pointed and laughed at him while Fran and Maggie looked at each other gleefully.

"What say you, CC? These are, after all, your vacation plans," Maxwell said, considerately thinking of his business partner.

Loath though she might be to vacationing with Nanny Fine and the nemesis butler, CC figured it would be better than staying for a few days in the Hamptons by herself. She might even get Maxwell's opinion on the property, knowing he had a different eye for things than she did.

CC shrugged and ignored the sagging shoulders of Niles. "I'm fine with it as long as _he_ ," she responded, pointing to the butler, "stays away from me."


	2. Wednesday

**Wednesday**

Niles slowed to a halt outside of CC's penthouse building with a feeling of increasing foreboding. He knew that this long-weekend-excursion was an awful idea, and the bad omens of the morning only completed his outlook: he'd had no time to complete his own laundry, a huge thundercloud hung threateningly overhead, and the stretch limo wouldn't start so the family was forced to take the Lincoln Townecar. A roomy car, the Lincoln still couldn't find a way to comfortably seat 6 people in the back, so Babcock would be forced to sit up front with him.

Niles felt an entirely different sensation as he watched CC cross the sidewalk towards them, one hand dragging a huge suitcase and the other furiously grasping her wraparound skirt so that she didn't give the entirety of Park Avenue a peepshow. He reached over and pushed open the passenger-side door just as a large gust of wind swept by and took the hem of CC's skirt with it. He glimpsed a pair of long white legs before she bent down to speak to him.

"A little help with the luggage, Lurch?" CC asked in a demanding voice.

Rolling his eyes, but eager to have an excuse to look away from her, Niles slid out of the driver's seat and popped open the trunk, heaving CC's heavy suitcase into it and nearly decapitating himself as a large hunk of debris flew past his head.

Niles slumped back behind the steering wheel and saw, out of the corner of his eye, CC fighting a laugh. "What?" he snapped.

"Windy outside?" she asked casually.

He replied, "Why don't you ask your skirt?" and smirked as she flushed slightly and looked determinedly away from him.

* * *

"Not much farther," Niles announced to the car as they crossed into Southampton. Niles glanced over at CC, her large Chanel sunglasses masking her face. "What made you want to work for Mr. Sheffield?"

"Hmm?" CC asked, glancing away from her window at the familiar scenery and looking at the butler. Niles could tell, even with the sunglasses, that she had a puzzled look on her face. "Why do you want to know?"

Her accusing tone chased away Niles' curiosity and he shrugged. "Just wondering. What's for dinner, then?" Niles asked, louder, clearly speaking to the family and not to CC.

"Lobster!" Fran and Maggie chorused.

"We won't have time for that," Niles said. "How about we order in?"

"I'm sure CC knows of some fine eateries up here, having spent most of her summers in this area," Maxwell said.

"Sagaponack is quite small. We'd probably have to venture further for some carryout. But I'm sure Niles wouldn't mind," CC said, grinning evilly at the butler. No one in the backseat came to his defense and Niles knew, with a sigh, that once in Sagaponack, his driving wasn't done for the day.

"Miss Babcock, tell Stewie that if he doesn't buy this place, I will," Fran declared, wielding a Chinese takeout box in one hand and chopsticks in another.

"All right, Nanny Fine," CC replied in a placating tone as she searched her own box for sugar snap peas.

Fran turned to Max. "Mr. Sheffield, couldn't you buy this place?"

Maxwell laughed lightly. "Miss Fine, I don't think I could afford it."

Fran pouted. "But it's _beautiful_."

And indeed, CC planned on telling her father that it was. The sprawling property's grandeur had rendered everyone in the Townecar silent as Niles had slowed to a halt in the looping driveway. The house's exterior was a fetching combination of stone and wood, complete with complementary landscaping. The rolling green lawns rippled in the light breeze from the Atlantic Ocean, which, as Fran was so keen to keep bringing up, was directly behind the house. The entire house was covered in large, panoramic windows and boasted several terraces on the second floor. The true beauty of the house, however, was in the back of it: a multilevel, blonde wood deck wrapped around a gorgeous pool and led directly onto the smooth sand. As she surveyed the back of the house, easily her favorite area, she knew that the sun would cast beautiful light as it set over the ocean.

"It can't be that much, can it?" Fran asked, her voice slicing into CC's thoughts.

Maxwell and CC glanced at each other, knowing the property value of a beachfront house in Southampton.

"Delicately speaking, Miss Fine, yes, it can," Max responded.

"How much?" she asked bluntly.

Both Max and CC shifted uncomfortably, each not wanting to discuss money, as people who have so much of it are unlikely to do.

"It's got, what, four bedrooms-" Fran began.

"Five," CC corrected. "And four baths."

"Wow," Fran breathed, still unaccustomed to families having separate bathrooms.

"And the kitchen's been redone," CC said, waving an appraising hand across the open floor plan and gazing lovingly at the steel appliances and blonde wood, a shared accent with the deck. "It's got a finished basement, three of the bedrooms have terraces, two staircases, and an upstairs living room."

"I imagine it would be an excellent rental property to own," Max said in a businesslike tone to CC. "You could rent out each room separately during the busiest months, and the direct beach access is a huge selling point."

CC nodded in agreement. "And it's a private beach with a marina only a mile down the road."

"So why don't you buy it?" Fran asked Maxwell enthusiastically, sending a piece of her almond chicken flying across the table and landing with an unceremonious _slap_ on Niles' forehead. When no one made mention of this, Niles glowered and continued working on his General Tso's chicken.

"Miss Fine," Max said gently, "this probably costs upwards of $5 million."

CC watched ruefully as the shocked nanny slid out of her chair and fell with a thud on the wood floor.


	3. Thursday

**Thursday**

Niles watched out of the glass back doors as Max, Fran, and the children headed down to the beach, a slight scowl on his face.

"What crawled up your butt, Butler Boy?" CC asked, stopping beside him to watch Fran's progress at walking in the sand in her five-inch heels.

"Oh, nothing, Miss Babcock," Niles retorted spitefully. "You know, I haven't thanked you for this lovely vacation. There's nothing quite like being at a beautiful beach, washing dishes, and having to share a room with a 16-year-old boy."

CC's eyes widened. "They made you share with B…B…Boy?"

Niles glared at her. "Yes, I have to share a room with _Boy_. Although they were kind enough to give us the room that has two twin beds."

"You're sleeping in a twin?" CC repeated, immediately cackling with laughter.

Niles' anger evaporated slightly as he realized that CC stood next to him in a black-and-white one-piece bathing suit. "Don't worry about me, Shamu. I'll be fine."

CC's laughter died away as her insecurity got the better of her. "Shut up. Don't you have a meal to plan?"

"Indeed, especially as I didn't realize I'd have to feed _so much_ of you," Niles retorted cruelly, turning and heading back into the kitchen. By the time he turned around at the island, all he could see were the backs of CC's heels as she hurried back upstairs. Moments later, she flounced back downstairs wearing a black cotton cover-up. She spared no glance for Niles as she slid open the door and headed down to the beach.

* * *

Niles spared no time for the ocean his first full day in Sagaponack, as he was too busy fulfilling the lobster request. He had just finished putting the garnish on everyone's plates as the family lazily entered the house, sluggish from a day in the sun.

"Ooh, it looks delicious," Fran commented, immediately selecting a seat at the dining room table.

Niles did a quick head count and turned to Maxwell, puzzled. "Where's Miss Babcock?"

Max shrugged, distracted by the feast he was about to enjoy. "I'm not sure. We saw her swimming a bit ago, but she wasn't with us all day."

Niles bit back his irritation at the family's self-involvement, especially considering she was the reason they were all here. "I suppose I'll go find her and tell her that dinner's ready." Casting aside his annoyance that his lobster would, in all likelihood, be cold by the time he found CC, Niles slid his feet into his sandals and embarked outside.

His hair adorably mussed by the breeze, Niles walked down the empty beach and kept his eyes peeled for CC. He eventually found her a half of a mile down the shore and spied boats further along. She sat with her knees drawn to her chest just along the shoreline so that the incoming tide tickled her toes, which she had dug into the wet sand.

"Miss Babcock," Niles called out.

CC squinted into the sun, resolutely not looking at him. "What?"

"Dinner's ready," Niles told her.

CC glared at the sand. "No need to worry, Niles, I feasted on a few stragglers who I managed to lure away from their families."

Niles' face scrunched up in confusion. "Shamu was friendly. You're thinking of Jaws."

CC's head lolled back on her neck in exasperation. "Whatever, Niles. I'll come back later."

"Now, I can't do that. Someone might harpoon you and then who would I play with?" Niles asked.

CC finally consented to look at him, holding one hand above her brow line to shield her eyes from the sun. "Is that your idea of a compliment?"

"No," Niles said, walking up next to her and reaching down to grab her hand. Pulling her up, he met her eyes. "But I'd hate to upset the delicate balance of our nemesis-ship. So come on, I steamed fresh lobster."


	4. Friday

**Friday**

"I'd definitely invest," CC concluded, walking into the downstairs living room and glancing out upon the beautiful shoreline. "I'm sure we could start earning a profit within two years…Yes, I said 'we,' this company's going to be mine someday…Anyway, we'd also have a beach house that Mummy _didn't_ know about, so I think that's a profit in itself." CC laughed at her father's response. "I'll be glad to meet with the property owner and fax the contract to you while I'm still out here…Ok, I will…Ok, goodbye."

CC ended that call and immediately made another, unaware that Niles had entered the room as well from the other staircase. His eyes widened as he saw that today, CC had elected to wear a navy blue bikini.

"Hello, this is CC Babcock," she said into the phone. Niles recognized her 'polite' voice. "I dropped my Pomeranian, Chester, off on Wednesday morning. I'm just calling to check on him…Ok, wonderful. Thanks." CC ended that call and tapped her phone restlessly against her leg.

"Going to invest in this property, then?" he asked, knowing that CC had no idea he was there. CC screamed and whirled around, chucking her phone and watching, in horror, as it split into several pieces against the wall behind Niles' head.

"What the _hell_ are you doing?" CC exclaimed loudly, holding one hand against her racing heart. "I thought you went into town with Maxwell and everybody."

Niles shrugged. "Change of heart." He bent over and collected the remnants of CC's phone. "Damn, Babcock, you've got an arm. And this house seems sturdy enough. Your phone didn't even make a scratch in the paint. Definitely a good investment."

"Why did you have to sneak up on me like that?" CC said, her voice still a few decibels louder than usual. "What the _hell_ is wrong with you?"

"Oh, calm down," Niles said impatiently, placing what was left of her phone on the kitchen island.

"Fix it," CC demanded.

"You're the one who threw it!"

"And you're the one who made me. _Fix it_."

Niles rolled his eyes and snapped the battery into the back of the phone. He put it back together within a matter of minutes and with the exception of a few scratches and a noticeable crack in the face, the phone was functional. He handed it back to her with a sarcastic bow.

"So you thought you were alone?" Niles asked.

"Obviously."

"Is that why you decided on a two-piece today?"

Horrified, CC glanced unnecessarily down at herself and gulped, awaiting the onslaught of insults.

"Hinge your jaw back together, Babcock," Niles instructed with a chuckle. "You don't look that horrifying." Though he was unlikely to ever admit it to her face, Niles thought she looked better than horrifying. Aside from the constant stream of insults issuing from his mouth, Niles was completely baffled about why CC was so insecure.

CC made a noncommittal noise in her throat and Niles rolled his eyes again.

"Here." He slid his white t-shirt over his head so that he was left bare-chested in his blue and white swimming trunks. "Now we're even."

CC's mouth became uncomfortably dry as she absorbed the situation: he, in his swimming trunks, and she, in her ridiculously low-coverage bikini. "I…ah…swim," she finished lamely. She grabbed her beach towel and hurried out of the house, Niles following soon after with a small smile on his face.

* * *

Later that evening, CC elected to forgo the family's plans of chartering a boat around the Hamptons, feeling oddly anxious as Niles opted out as well. Having not changed out of her suit all day, CC immediately left the house to avoid any awkward alone time with Niles and climbed down the deck onto the beach. She quickly divested herself of her white cover-up and began stepping toward the ocean.

Colder than it had been that morning, CC took her time and slowly eased herself into the water. She had just stepped infinitesimally further, allowing the ocean to inch up her calves, when she felt a pair of strong hands seize her waist. She had exactly five seconds to register that it was Niles and to brace herself for what she knew was coming before Niles lifted her up easily and tossed her into the water.

"Damnit, Niles!" she exclaimed, pushing her hair away from her face.

"My way is much more effective," Niles reasoned. "Quick like a Band-aid."

"That's your method? Disappointing," CC quipped.

"Oh, ha ha," Niles replied. "Such a dirty mind."

"Well, let's see if you like your own method," CC suggested. She splashed through the water to where Niles stood, calf-deep in the water. She grasped Niles' arm and pulled, attempting to submerge him and only succeeding in losing her own footing and falling into the water again.

Niles laughed and CC, scowling, made up for her failure by splashing him heartily. Niles shrugged and dove headfirst, swimming against the current and emerging several feet away. CC grudgingly admired his strength, though was unsurprised, as she had gotten a close look at his toned chest seconds earlier.

They lapsed into a surprisingly comfortable silence as they swam further out until the water came up to Niles' chest. CC bobbed on the surface, allowing the waves to carry her to and fro. Finally she stood and, burying her toes in the sand, glanced at Niles.

"I wanted to make my own way," she told him.

"What?"

"You asked why I wanted to work for Maxwell and I'm assuming you were asking why I didn't just work for my father. I knew what people would say if I worked for him, and I wanted to see if I could make it on my own."

"Make it on your own with $20 million in your pocket, you mean," Niles corrected.

"Give me some credit, Niles," she said, wiping the salt water away from her eyes. "I wasn't supposed to get a job at all. My mother had relented and let me go to college, but she assumed I'd find my husband there and just get married like I was supposed to."

"Which is why, I'm guessing, you chose an all-girl school," Niles said.

CC nodded. "I met Sara there and a few months after graduation, when I was back in New York again, she wanted me to work with her boyfriend who was trying to start up his own business."

"And that is the rags-to-riches story of how CC Babcock came to work at what would become Sheffield-Babcock Productions," Niles said, sweeping his arm grandly.

CC splashed his face and smiled as he accidentally swallowed a mouthful of salt water. "You don't have to be such an ass all the time."

Niles spluttered and hacked, quickly going under the surface and pulling CC's ankles out from under her. She shrieked and emerged from underwater moments later, coughing just as Niles had been.

"Yes, I do," he continued conversationally, as though nothing had just happened.

CC made a frustrated noise and began stomping away, though the effect was ruined slightly as the water resisted her quick movement.

Niles swam after her and stopped right in front of her, holding up his arms in surrender. "I'll play nice. Promise."

CC looked at him skeptically but relented, drifting peacefully in the water again.

The sun began its descent and cast an ethereal glow over the water's surface, causing shadows across Niles and CC's faces.

"If you were nicer, I'd apologize to you for having such a crappy vacation," CC told him in a surprisingly gentle voice.

"You mean if _you_ were nicer, you'd apologize," Niles corrected. CC stared at him balefully. "I mean, thank you. It isn't so bad here."

"There are some areas in the Hamptons that are so popular now, it's awful to go," CC said. "I like this place, though. It's more like how I remember the Hamptons being when I was younger."

"You mean, when the Earth's continents were all one mass?"

CC turned to him. "Why do I even bother? Yes, Niles, back when I was a baby dinosaur and I used to roam the Earth, looking for woolly mammoths to eat—"

Niles laughed and shook his head. "I apologize. Old habits, you know."

"Yes, I've heard something about an old dog and new tricks," CC said, sticking her tongue out at him.

Niles nodded again, as though allowing her insult. "Anyhow. It is beautiful here."

CC nodded in agreement and skimmed her hands over the ocean's gently swaying surface. "Shame how we live so close to the ocean but never seem to go."

"I could certainly get used to seeing some people in a bikini more," Niles said casually. CC felt her stomach flip.

"Why? Want to sell pictures of me to National Geographic? I'm sure they'd love to do a sea whale exclusive."

"I assure you, Miss Babcock, that were I to take pictures of you, I'd be the only one who saw them."

Again, CC's stomach squirmed and she fleetingly wondered if she was about to be seasick. "Well, I suppose you could use them as blackmail."

Niles stepped closer to her, and CC felt the tide between them change. "That isn't the purpose I had in mind."

"Why not?" CC asked with the air of a person trying to find level ground. "They'd be quite embarrassing."

"The only thing embarrassing would be my reaction."

CC looked him square in the eye, shocked to find him standing so close. The ocean swirled around them, gently lapping at their bare skin. Finding his intense stare disconcerting, CC turned to look at the shore, dimly aware that they were completely alone. She replied nervously, "You mean vomit?"

Niles reached over and turned her face towards his, pulling her closer and noting that she didn't resist. "You aren't a stupid woman, Miss Babcock. You know what I'm trying to say."

"I know what you're saying but I don't understand what you're doing," CC told him quietly.

"You really can't figure that out, either?" Niles asked in disbelief. Without waiting for a reply, still clutching her face with one hand, Niles pulled her face towards his. Their lips met in a tentative greeting, which surprised CC given Niles' apparent intensity. She vaguely acknowledged that he was, at core, a gentleman who wouldn't want to offend her. She gave him no time to wonder if he was, however, as she placed her hands on his shoulder blades and returned his kiss passionately.

He moved his hand from her face to wrap both arms around her, pulling all of her against him and warranting a tiny moan from the back of her throat. CC's hands moved restlessly over him, from his shoulders to his arms to the back of his head, as though her hands wanted to memorize what they were touching.

Niles slid his hands from her hips all the way up her body to tangle in her hair as they reluctantly parted to gasp in air. He rested his forehead against hers, loving the feel of her breath on his face.

"Oh, I missed you," he said softly. CC only had time to spare one confused look before he captured her mouth again. Following this came a wave of desire so strong that CC felt she might burst with it.

She slipped her arms under his and held him closer to her, feeling their desire mold together into a powerful beast. She gasped when Niles reached behind her knees and picked her up, moving his hands to cup her butt and hold her firmly against him. He slowly turned and carefully walked back to shore, unwilling to break their kiss.

"Beach?" he asked as he trailed kisses along her jaw.

Though she'd never before felt such a powerful urge to ravage someone, CC didn't want the Sheffield's, or anyone else, to see, despite the increasingly dark sky.

"My room," CC responded, pressing her lips to his and slipping her tongue into his mouth. She smiled against his lips as she felt his hands squeeze her bottom.

How Niles managed to navigate his way up the beach, climb the deck, and reach her room while she clung to him and assaulted his senses, CC would never be able to explain. All other thought and brain activity was extinguished except for the part that registered, second by second, what was happening.

As soon as Niles shut the door to her room, he walked purposefully to the bed and crashed down on top of her, pressing his length against her. CC's eyes widened and she hurriedly began to remove his shorts, which landed on the floor with a wet _slap_. CC's bikini quickly followed, at which point Niles broke off the kiss and sat back on his haunches, pulling CC's knees to rest near his shoulders. He ran appraising hands from her ankles all the way to her breasts, not breaking contact.

He felt CC squirm uncomfortably and looked up at her, confused. She glanced away from him quickly, so he bent forward and pressed a kiss to her hipbone. "You have no idea," he murmured against her stomach, pressing another kiss just above her bellybutton, "how sexy you are." He trailed kisses further up and CC's breath caught in anticipation. "And that _is_ my idea of a compliment." She was about to respond when he caught her breast in his mouth and the part of her brain that controlled her speech dissolved.

CC gasped and hooked her foot behind his leg, pulling him closer to her. Niles continued his ministrations to its twin on the opposite side, showing every intention of taking his time. CC, however, pulled him closer more intently and with one reassuring glance, Niles' resistance broke and he gave in. As he slid into her, the sun set fully and the furiously coupling duo were bathed in darkness.


	5. Sunday

**Sunday**

Sliding her sunglasses on top of her head, CC entered the rental house with a stack of papers in her hand and a pencil between her teeth. She slid out of her heels, cursing her stupidity at believing she could make the one-mile walk to the property owner's own house. The cool wood floors were heaven to her aching feet as she padded across the open area to the dining room table. Sprawling the various papers out in front of her, CC took a seat and began amending the contract per the owner's and her father's instructions.

Brighton jumped into the living room from the second-to-last step on the staircase and saw CC, at which point he started and tried to run back upstairs. He then crashed into his little sister, who shrieked and toppled over.

"Ssh!" Brighton shushed, making furious movements with his arms. Grace looked at him quizzically and Brighton whispered, "Miss Babcock's in the dining room."

Grace rolled her eyes and pushed her brother to the side, walking down the staircase and greeting CC. "Hi, Miss Babcock!"

CC grunted in reply and continued scratching furiously on the rough draft of the contract.

Grace looked over her shoulder to Brighton, who remained half-hidden in the stairwell, and gave him a look as though to say, _See? She doesn't bite_. Grace continued past the dining room table and slid open the backdoor, motioning for her brother to follow her onto the deck. Brighton took a deep, steadying breath and took off in a flash before CC could realize he was passing.

The littlest Sheffield slid the door shut and walked to the other side of the deck before turning to her brother and asking, "What's your problem?"

"Nothing."

"Nothing? So a few seconds ago, you were conditioning for your twenty-foot sprint marathon I didn't realize you were training for?" Grace asked.

"All right, fine," Brighton relented with a sigh. "Just don't tell anyone."

"I'm not Fran," was all she offered for an explanation, and this was enough for Brighton.

"Ok, well, remember how we came back late Friday night from the boat?" Grace nodded. "When I got in my room, Niles wasn't in there. But around 4 am, he woke me up when he came into the room…like he was mad or something, he was being louder than he needed to. Then the next day, when you and Dad and Maggie and Fran were swimming in the pool, I stayed inside, remember?" Again, she nodded. "Well, I came down from my room and went into the kitchen for a snack. Niles was in there, getting things ready for dinner, and CC stormed past me with the _most_ horrifying look on her face. Like I think they modeled all serial killers in the movies after that look."

"So? They just had one of their fights like they usually do," Grace reasoned.

Brighton shook his head. "Something was off. Niles didn't say anything and haven't you noticed that since yesterday, CC hasn't eaten with us?"

Grace paused and was clearly attempting to think of a reasonable explanation. "Maybe she just doesn't want to be around us. You know I don't think she likes us very much."

"She likes you just fine," came a voice from behind them, and this time both Sheffield children jumped and spun around. CC stood framed in the doorway, looking at them with an inscrutable expression on her face.

Grace chanced a look at her brother, who looked so terrified she'd be surprised if he ever spoke again. "Miss Babcock, we were just…"

"Talking about me?" CC guessed with a ghost of a smirk on her face. "Shouldn't you be off enjoying this beautiful weather?"

Grace nodded mutely and hurried toward the steps that led to the beach, doubling back when she realized Brighton remained frozen in place. Hooking her arm through his, Grace frog-marched him toward the beach.

When they were safely out of range and the waves were loud enough to drown their conversation, Grace plopped down onto the warm sand and turned to Brighton, who still appeared to be in a state of shock.

"Brighton, relax," Grace said, grabbing his arm and pulling him down next to her. "Ok, so what are your thoughts?"

When the warm ocean cascaded up the shore and ran over Brighton's feet, he seemed to return to himself. "Sorry about that. She's so scary."

Grace rolled her eyes. "She really isn't that horrible. I just think she's been through a lot in her life. Unresolved issues and the like."

"Anyway," Brighton said, eager to shy away from the therapy talk, "I don't know. I'm thinking something happened between them. Why else would Niles not go to bed until 4?"

Grace shrugged. "Maybe he'd been sleeping on the couch."

Brighton shook his head. "There wasn't anyone downstairs or in the upstairs living room when we got back."

"Maybe he'd been swimming."

"Until 4 am?" Brighton asked skeptically. "No, we would have heard him when we got back. You didn't see anyone on the beach when we came back, did you?"

Grace paused, clearly trying to remember. "Not that I can think of. It just seems unlikely that they'd have sex here."

"WHOA-HO, I said _nothing_ about that," Brighton said quickly.

"You said you thought something happened. What else would happen?" Grace asked.

"I don't know. I was just hoping maybe they finally tried to kill each other and they were both a little ticked off that neither succeeded," Brighton suggested. "Either way, I don't want to hear my little sister talk about _that_."

Grace rolled her eyes again. "But maybe it _isn't_ so unlikely."

"How? They hate each other."

"You know, I don't think they do," Grace said thoughtfully, creating a small sand mound next to her.

"Grace, I know you're younger than I am, but we've been around them enough to know. They're horrible to each other."

"Are they, though? I always thought they were just having fun and that Niles just liked to pick on her."

"There's a difference between picking on someone and making someone's life hell," Brighton pointed out.

"Yeah, but that doesn't change the fact that Miss Babcock is the person to whom Niles pays the most attention," Grace shot back. "And it isn't exactly like Miss Babcock makes an effort to stay away."

Brighton looked out across the ocean, watching the whitecaps crash in the distance. "I guess that makes sense," he admitted grudgingly. "Still, it seems like them getting together is something that would turn everything upside down."

* * *

CC sat at the bar, tapping her toes against the hard wood and staring into her dirty martini. The drinks she'd consumed had already gone to her head as she hadn't eaten much that day, owing to her constant effort to avoid him. She swirled the drink in her left hand, watching the olive pivot around the glass.

Her empty heart slid into her emptier stomach as she saw a mass of brown curls plop onto the barstool next to her own.

"What are you doing here, Nanny Fine?" CC asked, her voice clear despite the three-and-a-half martinis.

"I came to talk," Fran replied simply, smiling winningly at the bartender. "Sex on the Beach, please."

CC grimaced slightly as the bartender nodded with a small wink and began preparing Fran's drink.

"So. Let's talk," Fran said, spinning in her seat to face CC fully.

"I'm not one for small talk."

"Did I say I wanted small talk? I didn't walk 2 miles in these heels to engage in small talk, Miss Babcock."

"The bar's not even a mile from the house," CC told her, now using her small black straw to stir her drink listlessly.

"Felt far. Anyhoo, since you can't think of a conversation topic, I will. Let's talk about Niles."

A stab of—what? Guilt? Sadness?—went through CC's stomach. "What about him?"

Fran shrugged, but CC suspected that Fran was, however uncharacteristically, beating around the bush.

"I don't know. You tell me. Something's off."

CC thought back to the conversation she'd only caught the tail end of between the two children. "Why, did your kids put you up to this?"

"What? No. Do they know something?" Fran asked, her eyes widening, and CC knew that Fran was wondering whether she should have just stayed at the beach house and interrogated the people watching a movie there.

"There's nothing to know. I just heard them talking about me earlier," CC replied, taking a sip of her drink.

Fran mirrored CC and took a small drink of her recently arrived concoction. "Ooh, tasty. Let's switch." Fran replaced her colorful, curved glass for CC's small tumbler, only to replace it seconds later after she'd tried CC's drink and gagged. "Oh my _God_ , what is that? It's so salty and it _burns_!"

CC grinned. "It's a dirty martini. Good, huh?"

Fran looked at CC as though she'd just told her that an 80% off sale was not, in fact, the best thing in the world. "Right. Allow me to cleanse my palette for a second." She took a long gulp of her own drink, an act that impressed CC.

"Well done, Nanny Fine."

"Thanks. So let's talk about Niles."

"Determined, aren't you?"

"Again, thanks. Yes. I'm guessing if the kids are talking about you, it's because they've noticed how different you are, too," Fran said, twirling the paper umbrella in her drink.

"Different?" CC echoed, unwilling to give the nanny any information.

"You seem angry…er. Angrier. And you haven't spent any time with us."

"I wouldn't think anyone should mind that," CC said coolly.

"Miss Babcock, we don't hate you!"

"Well, pardon me for not wanting to join in on your boating excursion."

"I don't mean the family things we do," Fran said impatiently. "Even Mr. Sheffield doesn't want to do some of those. I meant during meal times or if we're all out by the pool."

CC shrugged. "Family time and whatnot. Don't want to intrude."

"Intrude? Miss Babcock, we're only here because of you. And that house is practically yours if that contract I happened to come across stashed in your folder in the bag on the floor of your room is true."

"Nanny Fine!" CC exclaimed.

"I was just curious about how much it was! And hoo-ha, my entire family, including the members still in Israel, couldn't afford it," Fran said. CC sighed and shook her head, wondering what this vacation would have been like had she gone on it alone. "Anyway, Miss Babcock, that isn't it. You seem different. You had no problem eating dinner with us before."

CC downed her drink and jingled the remaining ice cubes to catch the bartender's attention. He dutifully refilled her glass quickly, earning an appreciative smile from the blonde with the sad eyes.

"You can't ignore me forever," Fran said determinedly.

"You'll find that I can."

Fran sighed and turned to the bartender. "Any chance of getting a nosh? I could go for a _forshpise_."

Immediately, the bartender slid a menu over to the two women, saying with a grin, "My mother's side is Jewish."

"What do you say, Miss Babcock? Actually, I don't care what you say because I know you didn't eat dinner and I'm hungry. So we're ordering food." Fran decided on the seafood sampler appetizer, handing the menu back to the bartender with another grin.

Fran occupied the ensuing silence with a discussion of how lovely the Hamptons were and CC had the astute assumption that Fran was only lulling her into a false sense of security. But, CC realized with a pang, it was nice to talk to someone who didn't insult her every other sentence. She wondered fleetingly if she was lonely but dismissed these thoughts and instead appraised the burn in her throat the martini caused.

The appetizer platter arrived, featuring crab cakes, shrimp cocktail, fried calamari, lobster dip, and popcorn shrimp. CC's eyes widened. "Jesus, Nanny Fine, did you order enough?"

Fran looked at the platter. "Probably not. But we can order more later if we're still hungry." They spent a few minutes in silence as both began eating, CC admitting to herself that she should have eaten more that day.

CC stood up a few moments later, wincing slightly. Fran noticed and said nothing but asked, "Where are you going?"

"Restroom," CC replied. She returned minutes later, wincing again as she sat down.

Fran could no longer restrain herself. "What's wrong, Miss Babcock?"

Without thinking, CC answered, "I'm just sore."

"YOU SLEPT WITH HIM!" Fran cried loudly, earning both startled and curious looks from the various patrons and the bartender.

To her credit, CC fixed Fran with a haughty stare and responded, "Actually, I'm just sore from walking in the sand."

Fran looked at CC cannily before reaching out and tugging CC's left knee toward her. Fran's face changed into a mask of triumph as CC flinched again. "I don't know about you, Miss Babcock, but those are _not_ the muscles people use to walk. I know that soreness. Not lately, of course…but I know it well."

CC watched Fran for a few moments as though reviewing her. Whether it was the fifth martini in her system or the fact that she guessed she was lonely, CC took a deep breath and nodded. "Ok, fine. Yes, I did."

Fran's jaw dropped and a bit of shrimp fell unattractively from her mouth. "Oh. My. God."

CC couldn't resist replying, "My reaction, too."

Fran's look of shock was replaced with one of feminine comradeship. " _Really_? Good?"

"More than good. _Hugely_ good," CC said, enjoying her inhibition-less self.

"No! Niles?"

"Niles."

"Hot damn," Fran said, reaching for a crab cake, splitting it in two, and giving the other half to CC. CC took it with a grin. "Ok, so, tell, tell."

"Tell what?"

"How did it happen? When? Where? _How_?"

"Friday night," CC responded. "You all were gone, he followed me onto the beach, and one thing led to another."

"You did it _on the beach_?" Fran asked, the shock returning to her face.

"Almost. But no. He carried me to my room."

"He _carried_ you? Oh that's hot," Fran said, stuffing the entire half of the crab cake into her mouth.

"It was," CC agreed.

"How did he act? Was he all stuffy and British?"

"Neither stuffy nor British."

"Did he take his time or was he quick like a bunny?"

CC laughed, now understanding why girlfriends loved talking about this sort of thing. "He didn't quite take his time…I suppose we were both impatient for it. But he wasn't quick."

While CC scooped some of the lobster dip onto a cracker, Fran sighed and reached for another crab cake . "Meanwhile, all these years, I've been chasing the wrong Brit."

Unbidden, a small flare of jealousy ignited in CC's chest and she doused it with a quick sip of her martini.

By the time they'd finished the discussion, the platter was empty and the bartender was determinedly staying on the other side of the bar. CC polished off her martini and decided she'd had enough, while Fran seemed to be plucking up the courage to say something.

"So…what happened?"

CC knew what she meant but had wanted to avoid this particular point of her and Niles' evening. "What do you mean?"

"Why are you avoiding everyone? And why…why does Niles seem distant?" Fran asked.

"I…I don't know," CC replied lamely.

Fran thought back to the desolate look in Niles' eyes and felt suddenly protective of her best friend. "What do you mean, you don't know? You had your fun and didn't feel like anything else?"

CC stiffened. "Excuse me?"

"You got what you wanted from my friend and didn't need anything else? Did you kick him out right after? Regret what you'd done?" Fran asked accusingly.

CC's jaw tightened and she pulled two $50 bills out of her wallet, slapping them onto the bar with such force that Fran's paper umbrella fell out of her drink. "So you just assume I'd do that?" She stood up and slid her purse over her shoulder. To Fran's astonishment and CC's horror, CC felt tears prickling in her eyes. "Actually, I woke up that morning and he was gone. And he's been ignoring me ever since. He wasted no time that night telling me how…how sexy I was and how he'd missed me, but _he's_ the one who regrets what he did. So that's what happened." CC stalked to the door and pushed it open with a clang, disappearing into the darkness.

Fran shared twin looks of shock with the bartender, who just realized he'd been left a $65 tip.


	6. Monday

**Monday**

Fran sat at the dining room table, staring daggers at Niles. CC's seat was conspicuously empty, and Fran knew she was hiding in her room. Niles looked back at his friend confusedly, watching as she stabbed her eggs with ringing force.

"M-Miss Fine, are you all right?" Maxwell asked, worried he'd unintentionally made her angry.

Fran turned to her boss, smiling sweetly and replying gently, "I'm fine, Mr. Sheffield. Thank you for asking." She turned back to Niles, glowering at him and continuing the assault on her scrambled eggs.

"I wonder where CC is," Max said, his expression worried still. "She didn't come down for dinner last night, either. I hope she isn't ill."

"I don't know why she hasn't eaten with us. Why don't you go check on her, Niles?" Fran asked meaningfully. With a surge of satisfaction, Fran noticed a look of shame sweep through his eyes.

"She's a big girl. She'll come down if she wants to," Niles muttered, standing up and taking his half-full plate into the kitchen. He placed it on the counter with a clatter and left through the back door.

"What was that about?" Maggie asked, biting into a corner of her toast.

"I have no idea," Fran replied innocently.

* * *

Niles stormed down the wooden steps to the beach, wondering how much Fran knew. He suspected it had something to do with Fran suddenly leaving during the middle of the movie the family had been watching and CC returning two hours later, hurrying up to her room before anyone could ask questions.

Yet again, his mind had strayed back to CC. He'd admittedly done an awful job of not thinking about her, but it certainly didn't help when Fran forced him to. He was as surprised by her behavior as he was by his own, running like a bloody coward in the middle of the night. Most surprising of all was that he'd ran from a naked CC Babcock, the type that occupied most of his thoughts.

He walked along the sand to a small dune and sat down next to it, purposely hiding himself in case Fran came looking for him. He didn't need her special brand of guilt when he had his own bubbling in his stomach.

Dragging his knees to his chest, he rested his elbows on them and pressed his palms against his eyes. The cool darkness soothed him but soon evoked images of their splendid night together, forcing him to remember how she'd felt beneath him and the raw passion they'd shared. The wind whispering in his ears engendered memories of CC gasping in his ear and the crash of the waves mimicked his own guttural cries that night.

This was no good. The solitude didn't help and as he had no urge to subject himself to Fran's menacing stares, Niles stood and continued walking further from the beach house.

* * *

As the sun set and spread orange- and pink-hued rays across the horizon, Niles rounded the dune he'd hid himself behind earlier and continued walking along the sand. He stopped in his tracks when he saw CC stepping onto the beach from the deck. She gave no notice of Niles, her eyes cast toward the sea. Halfway between the deck and the shore, she dropped her towel and slid her cover-up over her head, her eyes still strangely glued to the horizon.

She continued walking into the ocean at a steady pace, not slowing until the water swished around her waist. Niles' forehead crinkled when he noticed her shoulders shaking. Instinctively, he made a step towards her and then, realizing he'd have no idea what the hell to say, spun on his heel and slipped up the deck and into the house.

As soon as he stepped into the house and slid the back door shut quietly, Fran rounded on him and pressed an accusatory finger to his chest, forcing him flat against the door.

"Explain yourself, mistah," Fran demanded.

Against his better judgment, Niles felt anger seizing his chest. He'd spent the entirety of the past two days beating himself up; he didn't need Fran's help. "Miss Fine, please move."

"Not until you explain yourself!" Fran repeated, digging her nail further into his chest.

"Frankly it isn't any of your business," Niles said rudely.

Fran raised her eyebrows and surveyed him through her widened eyes. She moved and crossed her arms over her chest. "It became my business when Miss Babcock told me what happened. Since you're not going to give _her_ an explanation, you ought to give me one."

Niles glared at his friend and realized it wasn't any fun being on the receiving end of a yenta. "What happened between her and me is our business."

"Well, what'd you just leave her for?"

Twelve hours roaming Sagaponack later and Niles still hadn't sufficiently answered that question. "That's between her and me."

"You told her you missed her!" Fran exclaimed and Niles' eyes widened in spite of himself. He hadn't expected her to tell anyone else that. Though, Niles reasoned, he hadn't exactly expected her to confide in Fran, either. "What did that even mean? You see her everyday."

"I hope to someday have information on you so you can appreciate how annoying this is," Niles told her.

"Fine, I'll back off," Fran relented. "Let me just say this: if you'd seen how upset she was, you'd be acting the same way."


	7. Tuesday

**Tuesday**

CC heaved her suitcase onto the bed and zipped it open. She'd momentarily considered going downstairs for breakfast but decided against it; the talk and laughter emanating from the dining room had been too cheerful for her taste. Thankfully, Fran had afforded her space and not attempted to discuss their conversation at the bar, or anything else for that matter, since. Everyone left CC alone, which, as she constantly reminded herself, was much better.

As she tossed her makeup bag into the spare corner of her suitcase, a soft knock shook her from her thoughts.

"Come in."

"I brought you a plate," a silky baritone voice said from the doorway.

Shocked as she was, CC showed no sign of it. She continued arranging things in her suitcase and neglected to turn around.

"You should have some breakfast," he told her.

"I'm fine," she replied curtly.

"You need to eat," he pressed.

"And you're suddenly the resident expert on what's best for me? I'm not hungry," she said coolly.

Niles stepped further into the room and set the plate on the bedside table. He reached out for her arm gently, saying, "Miss Babcock—"

She yanked her arm away from him so quickly she was surprised she didn't dislocate her shoulder. "Don't-touch-me," she said through gritted teeth.

"We…should talk. I ought to explain some things…"

"Nanny Fine guilt you into it? Ok, fine, let me explain," CC said harshly, turning to look at him. Niles' face turned from anxiously concerned to slightly fearful when he saw the hardened look in her eyes. "I'm guessing you'd _hate to upset the delicate balance of our nemesis-ship_ , so after a quick romp in the sack, you rethought what you'd done and decided to run for it. Only, to your dismay, you realized that we were still in the Hamptons. Unable to run back to your little room at the mansion like the dutiful, cowardly butler you are, you went back to your bunk with the teenaged boy and went to sleep, dreaming of feather dusters and hoping I'd forget what happened. Well, don't worry, it was quite forgettable."

Niles stared at her. "You ought to eat your breakfast, Miss Babcock." With that, he bowed out of her room and shut the door softly.

Back in the dining room, the family was unable to hear CC's quiet tears.

* * *

The family watched CC leave the house shortly after breakfast, walking purposefully with her sunglasses already perched on her nose.

"She must be dropping off the contracts," Maxwell guessed. "Well, then…will everyone be ready to leave by the time she returns?"

Fran and Maggie grumbled about losing out on another day of lounging in the sun but everyone agreed to be fully packed within the hour.

As Niles set about clearing up the dishes from breakfast, Fran followed him into the kitchen.

"I saw you take breakfast up to her. That was nice of you," she told him tentatively, hoping to get their friendship back on an even keel.

"She didn't seem to think so."

Fran nodded, handing Niles her and Grace's empty plates. "Understandable."

"I don't see how. I was trying to be polite. I offered to talk."

Fran gave Niles the eye-roll of the century. "Oy, Niles. You men are all the same. She's emotional and hurting…offering her a plate of eggs and bacon isn't going to make her feel better suddenly."

"It's a start to a mature conversation."

"Logic and maturity don't really factor into it. You're all wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am-ing and she's affected by it. I know that's difficult to understand—"

"Difficult to understand?" Niles cut in, looking thunderous. "You assume I'm completely unaffected by it? I finally got what I'd been dreaming about for the past eight years and then I completely blew it."

Fran smiled sweetly at him and then whacked him across the head.

"OW!" he exclaimed. "Why?"

"Because you're a _moron_. You shouldn't be telling this to me, you should be telling it to _her_ ," Fran said.

"I tried. Bacon and eggs, remember?"

"You've really been dreaming about it for eight years?" Fran asked incredulously. "What the heck takes you Brits so long?"

"Miss Fine, it's a lot more complicated than just walking up to her and saying, 'I've wanted to see you naked for so long'," Niles told her.

"No, that's not exactly romantic," she agreed.

"Miss Fine, you haven't started packing?" Maxwell called from upstairs.

"Oy, I was hoping he wouldn't notice," Fran muttered, wringing her hands nervously as she hastily exited the kitchen.

* * *

Due to a combination of Grace's carsickness and her interminable bad luck, CC ended up in the front of the car with Niles on the drive back to Manhattan. For the first two hours of the drive, Fran tried valiantly to avoid awkwardness by talking nonstop and attempting to get Niles and CC separately involved in the conversation. CC maintained a haughty silence throughout and after Niles tried to respond but only managed to swerve into the other lane, Fran gave up and absorbed herself in her _People_ magazine.

Maggie and Brighton nodded off in the last hour, Grace whimpered against her father's shoulder, and Maxwell, though he didn't know exactly what, knew something had transpired over the course of their trip and resolved to not involve himself in it. He uttered soothing words into his daughter's hair and hoped that whatever happened hadn't affected CC's business acumen.

"Miss Babcock, I'll drop you off first," Niles told her hesitantly. CC ignored him and continued to stare out the passenger's side window, her graceful profile illuminated in the sun. Niles sighed sadly and turned onto Park Avenue.

Niles had barely slowed the Lincoln to a halt when CC hopped out of the car and walked to the trunk, waiting for Niles to open it. As soon as it sprung open, CC tugged her suitcase mightily and, not bothering to close the lid, walked quickly to where the doorman stood.

Niles climbed out of the driver's side and walked dolefully to the back of the car, shutting the trunk. He stood for a few moments and had nearly talked himself into chasing after her when he remembered the family sitting in the back of the car. Unwilling to invite any more questions, always assuming, of course, that Fran hadn't already blabbed, Niles sighed again and got back into the car, driving the family home.

* * *

CC glanced at the artful clock on the wall above her fireplace when she entered her penthouse and leaned her suitcase against the wall. It was nearing 4 pm; if she hurried, she could fetch Chester from the kennel and avoid having to pay for another night. Slinging her purse over her shoulder, CC left her penthouse and set off to retrieve her puppy.

45 minutes later, silently cursing the fine-print policies of the kennel to which she would no longer go, CC walked up the sidewalk to her building. Chester weaved in crazy circles, refusing to walk in a straight line, in front of her. CC paused twenty feet from the door to her building when she saw Niles chatting with her doorman. She squared her shoulders and walked stoically up to the men, one of who jumped aside and pulled open the door with a polite greeting while the other one followed her inside.

"I waited for you," Niles said conversationally as they stood at the elevator. He appeared to be determinedly casual.

CC continued to ignore him, a feat that would soon conflict with her desire to kick him out.

"I hadn't realized you would go pick up Chester," Niles continued bravely. "He seems happy to see you," he motioned to Chester pawing at CC's leg. "I thought he didn't like you."

"Yes, well, everyone's just full of surprises lately, aren't they," CC said dully. The elevator dinged and slid open. CC turned to Niles. "Go away now."

She stepped into the elevator and Niles moved to follow.

"I said go away," CC repeated.

"I heard you, Babcock," Niles said, his casual tone replaced by a stronger one. "I think we need to talk."

"And I think you need to f—" the elevator dinged again as the doors attempted to slide shut "—off," CC finished.

Niles smirked and continued to hold his arm against the door.

"Is there a problem, Miss Babcock?" the building receptionist asked. This query caught the notice of lingering residents in the lobby.

Torn between her anger with the stubborn man in front of her and her desire to not make a scene, CC stepped aside and allowed Niles to enter the elevator. "None at all," she replied grimly as the doors shut.

They rode silently up to CC's floor and Niles watched as CC grabbed her mail from the mahogany table in the vestibule. She then unlocked her door and allowed Chester and Niles inside. After being unleashed, Chester ran amok through the penthouse, stopping to grab a piece of food, carry it into the living room, and then drop it to continue his exploration of familiar territory.

CC sighed and grabbed the piece of food, chucking it back into his food bowl. She tossed her mail onto the glass-topped dining room table and turned to the butler. "Well?"

"What?"

"You wanted to talk," CC said, rubbing her temples and feeling the vestiges of a headache approaching.

"Don't you?" Niles asked curiously.

"I already told you, I got my explanation," CC said, walking into her kitchen and grabbing a diet pop. She opened the can and walked back into the sunken living room, sitting on the edge of one of her large, overstuffed chairs.

"That wasn't an explanation. That was your insecure mind assuming the worst," Niles told her, walking over and sitting onto her couch with more confidence than he actually felt.

"Yes, please, sit down," CC muttered sarcastically, drinking her pop. She set the can onto one of her art deco coasters and leaned against the arm of the chair. "When a man you've just slept with leaves in the middle of the night without saying anything, I think that gives you the right to assume the worst."

"I didn't…what I meant…you always…" Niles spluttered.

CC raised her eyebrows. "Good talk. Can you leave now?"

"Damnit, woman, you act like it was a one-night stand," Niles exclaimed.

"Wasn't it?"

"I've known you for fifteen years and it isn't the first time something like this has happened," Niles explained angrily. "So no, it wasn't a one-night stand."

CC looked at him steadily. "That's the first time anything like _that_ has happened."

"Yes," Niles granted, "but we've had other…encounters of that…nature…before."

CC stared at the condensation forming on the outside of her can as she wondered if that's what he'd meant when he said he'd missed her.

Niles sighed impatiently and stood, sitting on the corner of the coffee table in front of her. "Don't you want to know why I left?"

CC's eyes remained fixed on the pop can, and she felt horrified that her eyes were forming condensation of their own. Slowly, she shook her head. "I know why," she said softly.

Niles took hold of her face and forced her to look at him. "You aren't just anyone to me, Miss Babcock."

"You treated me like I was," she said quietly, angry at how much she felt when she looked into his eyes.

Niles' eyes turned to pools of shame. "I know. I was…scared."

CC scoffed, her anger inflating, and pushed his hands away with her arms.

Niles stood up angrily and stalked away, turning back to look at her to say, "Do you think I _want_ you to be more than just anyone to me? That I enjoy feeling the way I do? I've been fighting it for…for a while now." As much as he wanted to set things right, he was still unwilling to admit how long he'd had feelings for her.

CC glared at him. So he'd prefer that she was nobody to him? "At least you could come to terms with it. It all came crashing down on me in a matter of seconds and it wasn't any easier to deal with when I woke up alone." She, too, stood, reveling in the familiar anger that soared hotly through her veins.

Niles walked back over to her; her proximity to him had an immediate effect. "I didn't think. I just left. I didn't want to…to ruin anything. I'm sorry." He saw her face soften and stepped closer still, pulling her against him and kissing her softly.

CC enjoyed the contact for a few glorious, amazing moments, relishing the feel of him and acknowledging how much she did miss interactions of this sort with him. She allowed the kiss to continue a few beats longer than she perhaps ought to but, again, she forced herself to admit that she had little willpower when it came to him.

Finally, CC gently pushed him away. "No."

"No?" Niles repeated, confused.

"I can't," she said, blinking rapidly to chase away the tears. "You…you hurt me, Niles, and I just…can't trust you right now."

"I know, but…we just…" Niles faltered.

"Maybe someday, but…not right now," CC said. She was not angry, but there was a finality to her tone that meant she was serious, and he knew it.

Niles opened his mouth to reply, thought better of it, and turned and left without saying goodbye.


End file.
